Page:The gold brick (1910).djvu/116

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notwithstanding the objections of the governor'—you know the lingo.

"Then, as the speaker said, 'The clerk will read the message,' Hen Harvey, who was clerk of the house, stretched his arm over the narrow desk and took the file from the page. The old man was mad when he wrote that veto message, and he gave both houses the devil. I never knew the legislature to get such an unmerciful lamming in my life; it was outrageous, for it was a good bill, and—"

"Ought ter pass," interjected Jennings, repeating the trite phrase sententiously.

"But nobody heard it, for when Hen began to read, the gang took a deep breath and began to howl. From both sides of the chamber broke forth a clamor of 'Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker,' until in the din even these words were lost, and there was just that long, heavy roar. The boys came over from the senate, for they had done their duty and had done it nobly, in the face of a great storm of criticism, combined with the abuse of the Chicago papers, and they wanted to help lift in the house. And with them came the crowd of reformers from the Municipal League, and stood about with George Herrick,